Intervention for Plenary Session 1: Challenges Ahead – Moving from Old to New for Stakeholders Recent Initiatives in Human Capacity Building in New Zealand（节选） Hon Lianne Dalziel Head of Delegation for New Zealand The New Zealand Government, in setting out its vision for New Zealand has established a commitment to economic and social transformation. Human capacity building is a critical factor to both. It is clear to us that to be successful in building human capacity, not only is cross sectoral collaboration required but also the Government must provide strong leadership and clear direction. Success requires getting a lot of things right not only with respect to core educational strategies but also in relation to capacity building in communities and in the links between education and enterprise. For this reason in our work we are drawing on the valuable perspectives of business, education and training providers and unions, along with lesson from international experience. This forum provides another such opportunity. New Zealand has over the past 18 months instigated a number of reviews and developed a number of initiatives, specifically aimed at human capacity building, and I will touch briefly on these. They are the development of the New Zealand Adult literacy strategy, the reviews of industry training, adult education and community learning and tertiary education, and the introduction of a modern apprenticeship programme. I believe that these are all areas where economies can share strategies to mutual benefit. The New Zealand Adult Literacy Strategy was launched last week. The driver for the strategy was a 1996 International Adult Literacy Survey that identified that 20% of New Zealand’s adult population has very poor literacy skills. Not surprisingly almost half of all unemployed New Zealanders were at the very lowest level of literacy. And among the employed, the lower the skills required, the higher the percentage of those low levels of literacy. The New Zealand literacy strategy seeks to address these issues by developing capability among adult literacy providers, improving quality systems and increasing opportunities for adult literacy learning. Two particular areas of focus will be: Work-based literacy programmes, to ensure that those currently employed are able to upskill ahead of technological advances; and Family literacy programmes, recognizing the strong links between parental literacy and their children’s literacy. We have also commenced a review of adult education and community learning to ensure that staircasing opportunities are available at every level. The next area of work is the review of industry training in New Zealand called “Skills for a Knowledge Economy”. The New Zealand Government recognizes that an effective industry training system is critical to New Zealand’s economic prosperity. Having a highly skilled work force, capable of continuous learning and able to respond to changing skill needs is the essential foundation for out economic growth and social well-being. Today’s environment is characterized by rapid technological change and the need to compete in global trade and labour markets. There is considerable flexibility in the current industry training system. It is based on transferable and modular qualifications and partnerships between business, training providers and government. The past decade has seen a rapid increase in both the number of people and the range of industries involved in industry training.